Vending-machine for stamps and envelopes



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

J. H. MCCORMICK. VENDING MAOHINEFOR STAMPS AND ENVELOPES.

No. 513,049. Patented Jan. 16,1894.

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(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2. J. H. MOOORMIGK.

VENDING MACHINE FOR STAMPS AND ENVELOPES.

No. 513,049. Patented Jan. 16, 1894.

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3 SheetsSheet 3.

(No Model.)

v J; H. MQCORMIGK. VENDING MACHINE FOR STAMPS AND ENVELOPES. N0. 513,049..

Patented Jan. 16, 1894.

3 UNITED. STATES PATENT QFFICEI.

JOHN H. MCCORMICK, OF NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA.

VENDING-MACHINE FOR STAMPS AND ENVELOPES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 513,049, dated January 16, 1894. Application filed November 11, 1892. Serial No. 451,652. (No model.) i

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JOHN HOWARD McCon- MICK, a citizen of the United States, residing at New Orleans, in the parish of Orleans and State of Louisiana, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in a Stamp, Envelope, and Advertising Machine; and I do de-' clare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in'the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an improvement in an automatic vending machine for stamps and envelopes having advertisements thereon, and its novelty will be fully understood from the following description and claims, when taken in connection with the annexed drawings.

The objects of my invention are to provide an apparatus that will discharge an envelope with one or more stamps on or in the same, by the placing of a nickel in a slot. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved machine, showing the top or cover dotted, in an open position. Fig. 2 is a top View, upon a large scale, of the operating mechanism with the floor of the machine broken, showing the mechanism underneath it. Fig. 3 is an end view. Fig. 4- is a side elevation with one side of the machine removed, and the sliding plate in its normal position. Fig. 5 is a similar view with the top portion broken off, showing the sliding plate pulled forward to force an envelope from the floor through the slot in the rear end of the machine. Fig. 6 is a top plan view of the sliding plate and its operating pull rod. Fig. 7- is a side elevation thereof. Fig. 8- is a sectional plan view of the lower front portion of the machine, on a still larger scale. Fig. 9 is an elevation of the mechanism upon the inner front end of the machine.

The same reference numerals denote the same parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

The inclosing sides 1, and the inclosing ends 2 are joined together by the upright pillars or corner posts 3,which are supported upon the base 4, and extended to the top or cover 5. This cover 5 has a card or advertising display holder 6 at its front end, and at about the middle of the said cover is formed a receiv ing mouth or opening 7, for the coin. One of the sides 1 is provided with an opening covered with glass or some other transparent material 8, for the purpose of viewing the contents or envelopes contained upon the floor of the machine. This same side is also provided with a coin discharge opening 9,through which counterfeit coin or coin of not the proper denomination to warrant a purchase, are disangle arm 12 for locking the money receiving drawer 13.

- The locking and unlocking of the money drawer is accomplished by locking and unlocking the cover 5, which, when it is locked, presses the angle arm 12, down into the lug 14 upon the inside of the drawer, and as soon as the cover is unlocked, and raised, the tension of the spring, brings the said arm back, and thus raises it out of engagement with the drawer-lo g.

The main coin chute 15 is secured to one of the sides 1, in a vertically inclined, diagonal position from the month 7 in the cover 5, by means of the bracket 16, and registers with the scale chute 17 upon one side of the pivot 18, while the said chute 17 has a weight 19 on its end upon the other side of the said pivot 18. The scale chute 17 is supportedin, and pivoted to the angle bracket 20 secured to the chute 21, which is secured to one of the sides of the machine, and discharged into the money drawer 13. Upon the opposite side of the machine is secured another chute 22 which works the pin 27, of the locking catch 28. The catch arm 24 has a projection 57, for the purpose of moving the said arm 24 by hand should the coin fail to operate it. This catch 28 engages a lug 29 upon the sliding plate 30, thus locking the plate to the end 2 of the machine. The sliding plate 30 is pro.- vided with a rack bar 31, which is engaged by a pawl 32 controlled in its rearward movement by a guard or arm 33, so as to prevent the said pawl from revolving entirely around upon its axis to hold the pawl engaged with,

the rack bar as the latter is moved back and forth, and force the pawl to hold the plate 30 in whatever position it may be placed, until it has traveled its proper distance backward as more clearly shown in Fig. 8. The rear end of plate 30 is provided with a series of fingers 34 upon its upper face. Secured to the central under side of the said plate 30, is the operating pull rod 35, having collars 36 and 37 forming the bearings for the ends of the spiral spring 38, surrounding the said rod 35, the collar 36 having its abutments against the rear edge of the plate 30, and the collar 37 having a like abutment against a lug 39, upon the under side of the floor 40, through which lug the end of the rod 35 slides. The floor 40 has a series of slots somewhat larger than the fingers 34, in which said fingers slide. The pull rod. 35, is bent at right angles, where it is provided with a pin 41, which trips the spring controlled lever 42, when the rod 35 is pulled, and operates the bell clapper 43, to sound the bell 44. At the angle of the rod 35 is formed a bearing end I 45 which engages the roller 46 journaled in the arm 47 pivoted at 48; which arm 47 is attached to a vertically slidable cut off plate 49, located in the rear end of the machine which opens and closes a slot 51, in the said end, through which slot the cards or envelopes 52, are delivered and through which plate the extreme end of the pull rod passes The said arm 47 is controlled by a spring 50. A skeleton partition 53 is secured at 54 to the sides of the machine to keep the cards or envelopes contained upon the floor 40 in proper position.

, The operation of the machine is as follows: A coin of the proper denomination is deposited in the mouth 7, drops therefrom into the chute 15 thence into the chute '21, falls upon the arm 24 and forces the portion of the said arm controlled by the spring 23 outward, allowing the coin to rest upon the plate 30; carriesthe catch inward, and causes it to disengage the lug 29. The pull rod is a then pulled, which opens the slot 51, carries the plate'30 rearward, and the fingers 34 catch one card or envelope, carry it rearward and discharges it through the said opened slot 51. When the plate 30 is thus pulled rearward and from beneath the chute 21 containing the coin, the coin falls into the money drawer 13. The alarm is given the moment the rod 35 is pulled, or the instant the plate 30 is moved; by means of the pin 41, throwing the arm 42 upward, which operates the bell clapper. The pawl and rack bar prevent the plate 30 from being pulled partially out and then returned to its normal position, that is if the plate is pulled only part way out the pawl and rack bar will hold it there, and prevent its return after the pull rod has ceased to be operated, and therefore it becomes necessary to pull the plate 30 its designed distance to complete one operation of the machine and set it for another. To collect the money from the drawer 13the lock 10 has simply to be operated to unlock the cover, and when the cover is raised, the'tension of the spring 11 raises the arm 12 from engagement with the lug 14 upon the drawer, leaving the latter free to be withdrawn.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination in a coin controlled stamp envelope machine having a delivery slot in one end, of the floor holding envelopes and having slots, the plate 30, the rack bar upon the plate, the a'w1, the guard 33 controlling the movement of said pawl and keeping it in engagement with the said rack bar, the fingers secured to and projecting beyond the edge of the said plate to engage the said floor slots as the plate slides beneath the floor, the pull rod, and the catch for releasing the said plate so that the latter may be operated by the pull rod to deliver an envelope through the said delivery slot substantially as set forth.

2. The combination in a coin controlled stamp envelope machine, of the locked cover, the money receiving drawer, the angle arm, the spiral spring having one end secured to the cover-lock, and its other end to the said arm whereby the drawer is automatically locked and unlocked with the cover, as set forth.

3. The combination in a coin controlled stamp envelope machine, the end 2 having a delivery slot, the floor having a series of slots at right angles to and upon the same horizontal plane with the said delivery "slot, the slidable plate 30, having a series of fingers adapted to push one envelope at a time from the floor through the delivery slot, the coin controlled mechanism for releasing the slidable plate, the pull rod secured to the said plate, and means operated by the pull rod to open and close the delivery slot automatically with the sliding of the plate 30, as set forth.

4. The combination in a vending machine of the character described, the'chute 21 "having the spring 23, the scale chute supported from the chute 21, the weight upon the end of the scale chute opposite the chute 21, the catch arm 24 held in the bottom of thelatter chute by means of the said spring and re moved therefrom by a coin, the plate 30 re ce vmg the coin after the catch arm has been removed, the catch holding the said plate locked to the end of the machine until the said catch arm has been thus operated, and

means for sliding the said plate so that it will deposit the coin, as set forth. I

5. The combination with a vending machine of the character described, the horizontally 5 slidable plate, the pull rod secured thereto,

the pin 41 upon the pull rod, the vertically slidable plate, the arm 47 having a roller, and

' secured to the latter plate, the spring 50 holding the said roller in position to be engaged IO by a portion of the pull rod, the spring controlled lever 42 adapted to engage the said In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

J OHN H. MCCORMICK.

Witnesses:

RIoARDo Dnn, L. G. MCCARTHY. 

